Super Mario 3-D World
Summary Super Mario 3-D World is a another 3-D platform game that takes the 3-D format from Super Mario 3-D Land for Nintendo 3-DS. Story Everybody's Favorite Plumber and his friends (including Princess Peach) venture into a land where Mario's usual enemy: Bowser Koopa has kidnapped 8 fairy princesses and Mario and his friends must rescue them. Game Modes There are 3 game files which you can choose from. Johnny's Reviews General Thoughts Of course, as being a huge Super Mario Bros. fan, I had to play this game. Of course, SMB games always impresses and amazes me (never fails to do so). Graphics The Grpahics of the game are very clear and dazzling, virtually everything about the graphics in this game is nearly flawless, just only a few imprefects is what keeps it from being perfect. But, that's okay. The graphics don't need to be, especially by my eyes. Rating: A+ Music There are quite a few soundtracks in the game, but some of those tracks are the same piece of music only done in a different fashion to fit with the environment of the stage. On a more positive note, there are several classical tracks (e.g., the toad house theme from Super Mario Bros. 3 as well as if you lose a life) which compensates for the lack of variety of music in this game. Rating: D+ Sounds/Voice The sounds in this game is very clear, crisp and a pleasure to hear. Of course, there are classical sounds when you get a Magic Mushroom and stomp on an enemy as well as some new sounds in the game which keeps a lot of the sound chip in this game fresh for a while. The voices, though limited but very good overall, some of the VAs also do a good job meowing when they have thew new power-up in the game: the Cat Bell. Rating: B+ Gameplay/Controls The gameplay of Super Mario 3-D World is it's main meat of the entire game. Of course, Mario & Co. have their basically jumping abilities. But taking a game chip from Super Mario Bros. 2 by having the ability to choose either Mario, Luigi, Toad and even Peach. Each character has their own abilities as well as their limitations, Mario and Toad are balanced, while Luigi and Peach have jumping abilities that are unique, Luigi jumps very high, while Peach can use her dress to float in the air for a few seconds. Apart from power-ups that make their return from previous SMB games, Mario & Co. use power-ups new to this game. The first is the Cat Bell which gives the player Cat-Like powers (as well as a cat suit), you can pounce on your enemies and even (temporarily) climb up walls. The game also has the "Luigi" stars (the green color stars from Super Mario Galaxy once you rescue Luigi) you must collect in order to play in certain stages or even to proceed. You can collect Luigi stars from other stages as well, such as bonus stages (separate from the regular stages) or even control another Toad where you can guide him past enemies and collect these stars. The controls also is the game's strength, it has overall versatility as you can either use the Wii U Game Pad, the Wii U Pro Controller, or even the Wii Remote. Up to 4 players can play as well. Though, the controls is a bit loose and directing the camera is also something to get used to. But these problems are minor, and you can get used to them quite quickly and easily. Rating: A+ Replay Value So far, every world has at least one Bonus stage where you can get extra lives, there's also extra stages you can also play (if you have enough Luigi Stars to play in them). However, once you beat the game you can explore the star world where you play more stages that are especially challenging, not for the inexperienced or for the faint of heart. You can also play a small game called Luigi Bros. (a Luigi version of Super Mario Bros., but you play as Luigi instead of Mario). In the Star World, if you can play good enough, you can unlock Rosalina from Super Mario Galaxy and play as her. Rating: A Final Thoughts Of course, it may be because I'm an eternal fan of Super Mario Bros. but this game looks to be one of the best on the Wii U in 2013. I would definitely recommend this for those who like these games as well. Overall Rating: A